Detective: Blood, casings found at rancher's house

August 7, 2013

WILLISTON (AP) - Investigators found blood, ammo casings, teeth and eyeglasses at the home of a slain hobby rancher whose body was found in a garbage dump, a Williston County sheriff's detective testified during a hearing.

Six people are charged in the death of 58-year-old Jack Sjol, whose body was found May 14, three weeks after his family reported him missing, the Williston Herald reported. Sjol had bullet wounds to his head, face and left upper arm, authorities said.

Ryan Stensaker, 33, has been charged with murder and appeared in court on Monday.

Detective Sgt. Amanda McNamee testified during the hearing that the ammo found at Sjol's house came from a .300 Savage bolt action rifle, which was found in Stensaker's mother's house.

Stensaker's attorney, Steven Mottinger, argued that there is no proof that the lone bullet found in Sjol's body came from Stensaker's gun.

Jeremy Weyrauch, 31, of Williston, and Ronald Gibbons, 27, are charged with conspiracy to commit murder. Issac Steen, 31, and his sister Teresa Steen, 33, both of Williston, are charged with facilitation of murder. Amber Jensen, 29, of Williston, is charged with hindering law enforcement.

Authorities say Stensaker, Weyrauch and Gibbons conspired to kill Sjol, that the Steens allowed Sjol's body to remain in a garbage dump on their property, and that Jensen withheld information from investigators.

Sjol was born in Minot and had lived in the Williston area for more than 30 years. He retired from his job with the city of Williston two years ago and lived on his hobby ranch.